Collapsible box.



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE;

ADOLPI-IUS SILBIGER, OF VIENNA, AUSTRIA-HUNGARY.

COLLAPSIBLE BOX.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 698,568, dated April 29, 1902.

Application led March 29,1901. Serial. No. 53,551. (No model To ctZZ whom it mag/concern:

Be it known that I, AnoLrHUs SILBIGER, a subject of the Emperor of Austria-Hungary, residing at Vienna, Austria-Hungary, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Collapsible Boxes; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to letters of reference marked thereon, which form a'part of this specification.

This invention has relation to collapsible or foldable boxes, and more particularly to that type of boxes shown and described in my application for `Letters Patent, Serial No. 716,879, filed May 15, 1899, in which the end walls hinged to the opposite ends of the bottom of the box and the side walls hinged to cleats secured to the sides of the bottom all -fold onto saidpbottom between the cleats,

which latter" are provided with means for securing thereto the box lid or cover through the medium of the fastening devices used to secure such lid To the 'box when set up for` use, so that when folded the parts of the box are selfcontained and secured together by means of the lid-fastenings, whose loss is thus prevented, while the folded box is of the same dimensions as the boxwhen set up for use, except as to height or depth, which in the folded condition does not materially exceed the thickness of the box walls.

The object of this invention lies in the means Vfor fastening the vertical walls together, in means for preventing the end walls from folding or dropping into the box when unlocked from the side walls, in means for bracing the end walls against internal pressure, and in simple means for sealing the box but that my invention :may be fully understood I will describe the same in detail, reference being had to the accompanying drawings,in whicli-- Figure l is a top plan view of a box'emf bodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a like View with the lid or cover removed; and Figs. 3 to 9 are detail views illustrating, respectively, the means for locking the vertical walls of the box together, the means for preventing the end walls from folding or dropping into the box when unlocked from the side walls, the means for bracing the end walls against pressure from within, and the means for sealing the box.

The collapsible box comprises end walls e and c', side walls s and s', bottom b, and lid or cover Z. The end walls e and e' are hinged at 71, to the ends of the bottom ZJ, so as to fold inwardly onto each other, while the side walls s and s are hinged to cleats secured to and rising from the lateral edges of the bottom, so that said side walls will fold inwardly onto each other and onto the'end walls in the space between the aforesaid cleats with the upper face of the upper side wall substantially iiush with the upper face of said cleats,"the latter being provided with means for securing the plates lies Hush with the upper face of said Y side Walls, is of increased thickness and provided with a screwthreaded hole for the fastening-boltsB, the cleats above referred to being provided with similar angle-plates.

Thev lid Z has secured thereto at"points equidistant from its vends cleats Z', to the proximate vertical faces of which are secured the lvertical members of angle-irons Z2, whose horizontal members are secured to said lid and Aprovided at each end with auopening in register with the screw-threaded holes in angleplates P, above referredto, so that the lid can be secured to the ubox `when turned end for end.

To the inner face of each end wall e and e', near its upper and vertical edges, is'pivotally secured a hook-latchH," adapted to engage a slotted keeper K, secured to the inner face of the vertical walls, Figs'. 2 and, said ,i hook and keeper being recessed in the box-walls, so as to be fiush therewith and whereby the vertical walls of the box are detachably secured together.

IOO

It will be observed that the hook-latch H engages the keeper by entering the slot therein in the upper face of the side Wall s 8', and when so engaged the upper face of the hook Will be Hush with the like faces of the end and side walls, so that when the lid is secured to the box an accidental disengagement of the fastener H cannot take place, as the lid has bearing thereon.

In order to preventthe end walls e and e' of the box from folding or dropping inwardly when unlocked from the side Walls, I provide a spring S, secured to the inner face of the side walls, the free end of which spring has bearing on the inner face of a metallic plate p, Fig. 4, recessed in the end walls. There may be one of said springs S for each end wall, though I prefer to provide two, as shown in Fig. 2. In order to more firmly brace the end walls against pressure from within, I provide each of said walls on opposite sides with a slotted keeper K', recessed in the outer face of said walls and adapted to be engaged by a locking-hook H', recessed in the inner face of the side walls with its hook end in line with the slot in the keeper K', so as to engage the same when the end wall is raised into a vertical position, the springs S then snapping over their respect-ive plates p.

In practice I prefer to secure to the vertical edges of the side walls corner angle-irons i, so as to lap over the joints between the side and end walls and over the brace-hooks I-I, to more eectually brace the ends of the box.

In order to seal the box when packed and ready for shipment and at the same time provide means for securing the ends of the lid Z to said box, I provide each of the end walls with an angle-plate P/ of the same construction as the angle-plates P, above referred to, for the reception of screw-bolts B. To the outer face of the lid I secure a plate p', provided with a bolt-hole or recess p2 in register with a hole in the lid Z, which last-named hole is adapted to register with the bore of the nut on angle-plate P for the aforesaid locking-bolt B. The plate p projects over a recess Z3 in the lid and is provided at that ypoint with a hole 193, Fig. 1, and to said plate is pivoted a disk d, provided with a fingernotch d of sufcient size to allow the passage therethrough of the head of the bolt B when said disk is turned into proper position,

The disk d has a hole d2, adapted to be brought into register with the hole p3 in plate p' when said disk is turned into proper position, whereby its finger-notch d is moved out of register with the bolt-hole in plate p and will cover said hole and the head of the bolt B". A cord, wire, or the like may now be passed through the holes in disk d and` plate p, and a lead seal applied to the ends thereof, as shown in Fig. 8, such seal being placed in recess Z3 in lid Z, or the ends of the sealing-cord may be sealed into said recess, as will be readily understood, and so as to avoid the accidental tearing off of the seal in transportation and handling of the box.

I have hereinbefore referred to a lockinghook H, secured to the inner face of the side Walls s and adapted to engage a keeper K on the outer face of the end Walls e to more 4firmly brace the end walls against internal pressure. In practice I prefer, however, to so construct the hook II as to also embrace the side walls of the box. To this end the said hook is T-shaped, as shown in Figs. 6 and 9, the stem being secured to the inner face of a side wall flush therewith, While the ends of the transverse member of the hook are bent at right angles, so that when secured in position that portion 71, of said horizontal member will embrace such side Walls, While the other portion H2 of said horizontal member of hook H will project inwardly in line with the keeper K on end Wall e when the latter is turned up and engage said keeper.

`Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new therein, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-- l. In a collapsible box, the combination with the side and end walls; of locking-hooks A pivoted to the inner face of said end walls, and metal keepers K secured to the like faces of the side walls in position to be engaged by said hooks, the latter and their keepers recessed in the end and side walls respectively so as to be ilush with their inner faces and so positioned that when the hooks are in engagement with their keepers the upper faces of the former will be flush with the like faces of the end and side walls, and a lid having bearing on and covering said hooks and keepers when applied and fastened to the box, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. In a collapsible box, the combination with the side Walls having locking-hooks H land the end Walls having keepers K engaged by said hooks, of fastening devices for detachably securing the said end walls to the said side walls, for the purposes set forth.

3. In a collapsible box, the combination with the side walls having locking-hooks H and corner angle-irons Q2 lapping over the ends of said hooks, of the end walls having keepers K engaged by said hooks, and fastening devices for detachably securing said end Walls to said side walls, for the purpose Set forth.

4. The combination with a box the end walls of which are provided with the locknuts P flush with lthe upper face of said walls, of the box-lid provided with a recess Z3 and a bearing-plate p projecting over said recess and provided with a hole for the pas sage of a seal cord or wire and with a countersunk hole in line with the bore of the aforesaid lock-nut for the reception of a fastening-bolt B, and a disk pivoted to said plate and adapted to cover the bolt-head, said disk provided with a finger-notch adapted to be brought into register with said bolt- IOO IIO

head and with a hole for the aforesaid seal myinvention I have' signed my name in prescord or wire, so located thlt when the disk is ence of two subscribing witnesses. turned to cover the boltead the seal-cord hole in said diskwill register with the like e. ADOLPHUS SILBIGER' 5 hole in thepaforesaid plate p over recess Z3, `Witnesses: Y

substantially as and for the purpose set forth. GEO. E. FRECH,

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as e HENRY ORTH, J r. 

